Chlorine dioxide was discovered in the early 1800's, and was adopted by commerce in the United States in the 1940's. Chlorine dioxide has been called the ideal biocide and the ability of chlorine dioxide to reduce or eliminate viable microbes, e.g., bacteria, viruses, fungi, mold spores, algae and protozoa, is well-documented and well known. See, for example, Franklin, C. L. et al. (1991) Am Vet Med Assoc 198:1625-30; Korich K. G., et al. (1990) Appl Environ Microbiol. 56:1423-8; Boddie et al. (2000) J Dairy Sci. 83:2975-9; Lee et al. (2004) J Food Prot. 67:1371-6; Han et al. (2003) J Environ Health 66:16-21; Sy et al. (2005) J Food Prot. 68:1176-87; and LeChevallier M. W. et al. (1988) Appl Environ Microbiol. 54:2492-9.
Chlorine dioxide inactivates microorganisms by oxidizing key components of a microorganism's membrane proteins that are vital to the membrane's structure and function. Also, the oxidizing reaction that causes microorganism inactivation does not form trihalomethanes (THMs) or haloacetic acids (HAAs).
Approvals and registrations for use of chlorine dioxide in a wide variety of applications have been granted by the EPA, FDA and USDA, and such approvals and registrations have led to an increasing adoption of the use of chlorine dioxide.
There are many reasons for the ongoing expansion of chlorine dioxide use including its effectiveness against microorganisms at very low concentrations.
A major limitation to the use of chlorine dioxide is that chlorine dioxide can not be manufactured in bulk at an industrial gas plant and shipped to final use destinations. Accordingly, chlorine dioxide must be generated on-site.
Moreover, the rate of hospital-acquired infection is increasing and the use of chlorine dioxide to disinfect spaces, such as hospital rooms, would be beneficial to reduce the number of hospital-acquired infections. However, the use of chlorine dioxide gas in public spaces has limitations that are not addressed by the prior art.
Accordingly, the instant invention provides methods and apparatus for the disinfection of spaces, e.g., hospital rooms or nursing home rooms.